The focus of this blog has generally been on adults who have a disability that makes it difficult or impossible for them to work. It has also tended to focus on Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), rather than Supplemental Security Income (SSI), for the simple reason that the pool of candidates who qualify for SSDI is much larger. However, what about children who are disabled? After all, they may not have a work history, and may well be supported by their parents. Luckily, there is a way that children can qualify for Supplemental Security Income.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) puts out a booklet that explains how children may qualify for various benefits. This primer indicates that there are three basic factors that will be looked at to determine if a child qualifies for SSI.
First, in 2015, the child must not earn a monthly income above $1,090. It should be noted that this income threshold is variable and can change from year to year. Second, the child needs to have a disability, either physical or psychological, that creates marked and severe functional limitations. This is legal-speak for a condition or combination of different problems that limits a child’s activity in a very severe way. Finally, as with adults, the child’s disability must have lasted, or be expected to last, more than a year, or be expected to result in the child’s death.
Raising a disabled child in Ohio can be a very rewarding, but sometimes harrowing experience. Dealing with medical and therapeutic expenses, adjusting the residence in which the child lives to accommodate his or her disability and making sacrifices in an individual’s professional life in order to care for the child can create severe financial hardship. Luckily, government benefits exist to help, and if you have questions about qualifying for them and the process of applying, a good first step may be considering contacting an Ohio disability attorney.